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  Two More Churches Remain Open; Closing Dates Rescinded for Others

By Mark Pratt
Associated Press, carried in The Boston Globe [Boston MA]
June 17, 2005

BOSTON --Two more Roman Catholic churches scheduled to close under the Boston Archdiocese's reconfiguration plan will remain open as independent parishes, Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley announced on Thursday, and several others got at least a reprieve.

St. Isidore in Stow and St. Mary of the Angels in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood will stay open on the recommendation of the archbishop's reconfiguration review committee. Another church, St. Lawrence in Brookline, will remain open as a chapel affiliated with St. Mary in Brookline.

St. Susanna of Dedham will remain open until at least March 2008, at which time the archdiocese will re-evaluate its future.

O'Malley also said that closing dates earlier announced for St. Pius X in Milton and Sacred Heart in Watertown were rescinded. St. Peter Lithuanian in South Boston, which has been on the closure list without a closing date, will not be given one.

"It is my hope and prayer that the decisions announced (Thursday) will be received with an open heart and understanding by all the people of the archdiocese," O'Malley said in a statement.

The decisions on the latter four parishes "basically means they will remain open," said Terrence Donilon, a spokesman for the archdiocese.

"This demonstrates a willingness by the archbishop to be open and to listen," he said.

Peter Borre, co-chairman of the Council of Parishes, a coalition of parishioners formed to fight the reconfiguration process, saw the news as mixed.

"I consider this good news for three parishes, but for the others named, it's a disappointment," he said. "The basic decision to close remains."

Rima Girnius, who attends St. Peter, the only Lithuanian church in the archdiocese, said while she was glad not to have a closing date, parishioners will fight to keep it open.

"When the church dies, everything else will die. To keep the Lithuanian community alive, we will fight for our church," she said.

The Rev. Stephen S. Josoma, pastor at St. Susanna, said parishioners are very happy with the decision. "This is a strong and growing parish that is only getting stronger," he said.

The Rev. David Gill, pastor of St. Mary of the Angels, said parishioners were "thrilled." He said it was hard to plan for the future with an impending closure date and that morale had dropped. The church serves a heavily immigrant community and performs Masses in Spanish, he said.

O'Malley announced in May 2004 the closure or consolidation of more than 80 parishes. He said the reorganization was needed because of declining Mass attendance, a shortage of priests and a financial crisis caused in part by the clergy sex abuse scandal.

In response to criticism, O'Malley established a committee to re-examine some of the church closures, led by Peter Meade and Sister Janet Eisner. The Meade-Eisner Committee is continuing its work, the archdiocese said.

 
 

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